Newsletter #888

Well, what a game and result on Sunday as Saint Shaun leapt to our rescue yet again. Four points from the Rags this season, it really is too easy. Yours truly is halfway through a match report which is lost somewhere in the ether around Greater Manchester and should be here for Thursday, but meantime we have match news and views from David, Vanes and Mark.

We also have plenty of opinion, requests and humour.

Finally, the reserves are in action on Wednesday night at Hyde vs. Bury (Senior Cup).

MATCH VIEW I: MUFC 1 MCFC 1

I hadn’t expected us to get anything out of this match so when von Nettletop scored I feared the worst. However, with a bit of luck and determination we held on to half time despite being second best. The second half was different and City bettered Them in most departments without really threatening and with us still relying on some heroics by Nash and Distin. Then with 5 minutes left on came Goater and Benarbia just as we had a free kick just outside their area. Benarbia fools their defence with a short crossfield pass to SWeeP who crosses and Goater gets ahead of Anelka to head home – 9 seconds and the Goat has grazed. Two minutes later a shot from Foe hits the bar, drops to Anelka – passes across the goal area to Goater – yes, yes, yes… no?! The ball had brushed Anelka’s hand before he passed to Goater and the ‘winner’ is disallowed. Still a draw was more than I’d expected and was well deserved.

Incidents / Players

They had three penalty claims and credit to Alan Wiley for rightly rejecting them all (although the first for the wrong reason). Beckham went to ground having lost the ball and under challenge from Sommeil – he clearly started to fall before any contact was made and the contact was a fairly light brushing with Sommeil’s sock. I hadn’t thought of Beckham as a cheat before but perhaps his Dutch friend’s influence is showing as he also collapsed just outside the area in the second half. Next von Nettletop wrestles with Howey and throws himself to the ground with the ball miles away – joke claim. Finally Howey slides in to block, facing away from the ball and the ball is hit against his upper arm – well above the elbow – no chance.

Taggart was clearly rattled by having a neutral referee – the first was a clear penalty he said and then complained that the handball leading to City’s free kick was similar to Howey’s in the penalty area. Wrong on both accounts – Howey was facing away from the ball and the ball hit high up on the arm – their player (Silvestre?) was facing the ball was hit on the forearm with his hand above his head (à la Foe and Liverpool). The Irish ruin should have been booked for kicking Berkovic from behind, which left him limping – still, if he hadn’t done that perhaps Berkovic wouldn’t have been replaced by Benarbia and…

Nash – Certainly much better than Carroll – looked uncomfortable with a couple of crosses, no chance with goal and made several excellent saves.
Sommeil – AWOL for their first goal otherwise OK but no better than Dunne.
Howey – OK – although didn’t keep von Nettletop as quiet as Wiekens had.
Distin – Good – let vN in for one chance but got back amazingly well to block his shot.
Jensen – A bit anonymous didn’t do much wrong but didn’t inspire either.
Berkovic – Sky’s man of the match – certainly worried Them every time he got the ball.
Horlock – Solid performance didn’t concede much in midfield.
Foe – I still don’t know about this guy – gives the ball away too much in midfield but can be a threat to any team going forward – not at his best or his worst in this game.
Sun Jihai – My man of the match – always available to help colleagues, rarely gave the ball away cheaply and after SWeeP came on he went head to head with the Irish ruin in midfield without giving any quarter.
Anelka – Not at his best but still caused menace whenever he had the ball.
Fowler – Largely anonymous but occasionally thought he was going to blossom – perhaps his body couldn’t match his brain. Keep thinking – never buy a player from Terry Venables (think Lee Badbuy) and is he another Nigel Clough. Let’s hope not and at least the deal we’ve got means that if he isn’t fit we don’t pay Leeds too much (well done David Bernstein).

Subs:
SWeeP – OK, gave a change on the right and produced the cross for the goal.
Goater – This guy is the most under-rated striker in the Premiership – put him with the Arsenal team and he’d get thirty goals a season. In my view we should play him with Anelka any time that we can win midfield and get the ball in the opponents’ area. I don’t know of a better poacher – of course when we are losing midfield and not getting the ball in the area he’s not the sort of player to create opportunities from 30-40 yards so then we play Wanchope, Fowler or Belmadi alongside Anelka. Macken can replace Goater in time – they are very similar in style.
Benarbia – ‘shifty eyes’ deceived Them hook, line and sinker to create the goal.

MATCH VIEW II: MUFC 1 MCFC 1

The point we earned at Old Trafford has made me even happier than the 3 we fully deserved 3 months ago, when United were out of form and without some of their key players. But yesterday it was different. Their stars were all there, their form absolutely impressive and their thirst for revenge against us clearly visible after the first minutes of the game and about 64,000 fans loudly hostile against us. To sum it up, City faced the best Man United they could possibly face this season. And after the dismal display against West Brom, I was afraid we’d be lucky to get away with an “honourable” defeat. But I’ve been proven wrong, once again.

And I think it is now time for all of us to understand and to start to believe that we don’t need extra quality in the squad. Maybe a midfielder (considering Benarbia’s age) wouldn’t go amiss next season, but I’m sure we don’t need to spend any more money to obtain what we are really missing: the right mentality for this division, the awareness of being one of the best teams in the Premiership. I can see the same progress City had last season as we climbed the table after a pretty bad start. If we analyse the difference between us and the top clubs, we can only notice that they so rarely drop points against struggling sides. And to me the reason lies in the fact City sometimes have the wrong approach to the game, probably due to bad concentration and not enough belief in our huge potential. In other words, we lack a winning mentality (the same mentality who let us dominate the 1st division, as simple as that!).

We are strong. And very much indeed. And we had to thank Manchester United if we now know it. As I have already said at the beginning of this contribution, we played one of the 2 best teams in England (and the test will be completed vs. Arsenal at Maine Road). United played at their best, at their best! And they didn’t beat us, they had 180 minutes to prove they’re better than us… but they’re not! And this is so important to me. So why are they fighting for the title and we’re not? Don’t you agree with me that the answer is a lack of experience and winning mentality?

They can complain for that penalty incident as much as they like. First, from an angle behind the action, I could see no contact between Beckham and Sommeil, second, Anelka’s handball didn’t appear that intentional to me and third, I clearly remember City being robbed at Old Trafford as the referee simply invented a penalty from a corner kick cross – it was an FA Cup tie, and we were leading 1-0, thanks to Rösler.

So here’s my final recipe to success: let this squad grow, as unit, little by little. Keegan has sown all the seeds he needed. Just some time, and he’ll pick up a very, very tasty, juicy fruit for all of us to enjoy!

Now a thought about our hero, the Goat. I can see the reason why Fowler has come, the deal is great for a player like him. He will be so useful, probably a key player for our attack. But I can’t see the point in playing him like Keegan is doing: he’s got to play to get his best form back, and I can give him that, but to do so Goater has to be left out, and to me this is just a crime! He’s got Blue blood in his veins, he was there in the 2nd Division, and he is a “quality” (I want to use this word Keegan likes so much) Premiership player. The goal he scored at Sunderland tells us that. If he hasn’t scored more goals so far this is because he didn’t get fed enough during the bad run we had before Xmas and because Huckerby (happy to see him go: to me he’s a very good First Division player, but pace is not enough in the top half of the Premiership) was preferred to him (how ridiculous!) at the beginning of the season. I’m sure that decision cost us some goals. Honestly, no one can tell me Fowler is better than the Goat. At least not now.

Right, I can’t remember myself writing in English so much! I hope I haven’t made too many mistakes!

Just let me, before I go, say hello to Jimmy Grimble. I can see what he meant when he turned down the Rags!

MATCH VIEW III: MUFC 1 MCFC 1

Eyal Berkovic must have felt like Moses. He led his people to the promised land but wasn’t there to taste the milk and honey. Shaun Goater, how many times have we written him off? How many times has he rammed it back down our throats? Distin, imperious at the back, haughty Frenchman sliding to deny the Dutchman. Horlock steady, combating the allegedly superior opposition. Sun Jihai, receiving the ball, playing without fear. Nash, big man, big performance, rushing out to deny the Red tide. Anelka, a pearl amongst swine, gifted, always a threat. Sommeil, didn’t create but said ‘thou shalt not pass’. Howey, previous scorer, gave us hope at every set piece. Jensen, struggling but playing for his blue shirt. Fowler, clearly lacking that one stride of pace to split them asunder, but when Goater scored a smile as wide as any of us. Foe, a mystery, casual or committed? Hero or villian? SWP, running so fast he forgets to take the ball with him, putting in the crosses Sun Jihai must dream of doing. Ali, ying to Berkovic’s yang. Possessing a footballing brain as big as a house. He led us to the promised land. Eyal, everywhere, always an outlet, running and running, you built the foundation.

Kevin Keegan, still we have a nagging doubt, you’re a hero to so many others. It is time for us to realise the change you have created in such a short time. Anelka and Fowler, playing for City. A forward line to scare any team in the world. Thanks. We really have to stop giving Man U a point every season…

OPINION: THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT, THE FUTURE IS BLUE

The Under 17s today became Champions as they beat Liverpool 4-0 on their own turf to make it 51 points out of 53, only having dropped 2 points all season in the home draw against the side they resoundingly thrashed this morning.

This season has seen United beaten twice and the emergence of some outstanding young players as many of this record breaking team have also moved up into the Youth team, which takes on the Young Lions at the New Den in the 5th Round of the FA Youth Cup on Tuesday evening. Well done lads.

OPINION: A RED-EYED VIEW FROM FOOTBALL 365

I thought this piece was incredible, this guy is so pro-Red he can’t see the wood for the trees as his head is stuck somewhere else in his anatomy.

It’s always sad when a wrong decision plays a major part in determining a match – especially when that match is one which can have such a large impact on the championship race, as happened yesterday at Old Trafford.

With Manchester United leading 1-0, David Sommeil went to tackle David Beckham, got nothing on the ball whatsoever, catching the England man’s legs. Yet the referee gave a corner. We shouldn’t be too harsh on Alan Wiley – the angle was a bad one for him to be sure what had happened. But after Shaun Goater’s late equaliser, United were denied two points that surely would have been theirs. At least Nicolas Anelka’s handball was spotted and the Reds weren’t robbed of all three.

United have rightly been slaughtered in the past for taking decisions that go against them badly, so it is worth pointing out how professional they were on this occasion. A few complaints, but they got on with the game in moments. And afterwards, though angry, Sir Alex Ferguson was not obsessed with the subject.

By Philip Cornwall

If you feel strongly about this article you can always email: theeditor@football365.com

OPINION: A RED-EYED VIEW FROM NZ

Just so fellow City fans know, NZ’s number one radio sport show host Martin Devlin, while an excellent host and hard case, is alas a one-eyed supporter of the Rags, so make sure you let him know from all over the world how much we have enjoyed taking 4 points off them this season. I have just sent the message below to him. Forward e-mails at will to him this week in particular as his producer will undoubtedly take him to task over this result on air. Send to sport@radiosport.co.nz

Devlin,

You must be gutted. Only 1 point from 6 in the derbies this season. I can just picture “Feed The Goat And He Will Score” resounding around Old Titford and City almost pinched it at the end. And to boot the first ever heard of penalty turned down for the Rags at home… tsk, tsk! Rude MansNastyToy at least got one goal tapping home a cross from Rachel Hunter’s Welsh Reject. Oh well Marty look on the bright side, the dirty b@”%*$d otherwise known as Keane managed to stay on the park for 90 minutes without intentionally maiming someone! London and Kuala Lumpur will be in mourning at a home draw with City, whilst most of Manchester will be looking forward to work tomorrow. Another year in Arsenal’s shadow and City’s this year at least. God is indeed good.

OPINION: PRAISE THE GOAT FOR HE DID SCORE! I

Let the Goat out and there will be trouble in the city.
Who let the Goat out?
Feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed the Goat and he will score.

Well, considering the Rags were out for revenge it just did not materialise.

What an inspired piece of management decision making by KK. Throw all three subs on, win a free kick, Ali B pass to Sweep, Sweep chip into the box, up rose majestically the most ugly looking Goat to head in a most handsome header. Fantastic!

Looking back over the two games, the Goat beat the Rags all by himself scoring 3 goals to the Rags’ 2.

Well done Shaun, we love you.

OPINION: PRAISE THE GOAT FOR HE DID SCORE! II

Feed the Goat!
Feed the Goat!
Feed the Goat!

What more can I say? Feed the Goat!

I’m still celebrating!

OPINION: PLAYER WEBSITES

Just to let Lance Thompson know, that Jon Macken is another player who has his own website. It can be found at http://www.onlinefc.co.uk/jonmacken.

OPINION: COWBOYS’N’INJUNS

Howdy pardners.

I can understand why Pepsi have asked the Rags to advertise their product dressed as cowboys. Beckham believes he’s the magnificent 7, ‘van Nisteldive’, Veron and Phil Neville are the good, the bad and the ugly.

They thought they were going to hang us high on Sunday, but they were shot to pieces by Kev’s desperados and the Rags failed to DODGE CITY.

Long live the Goat.

OPINION: DON’T BELIEVE ALL YOU READ

In response to Peter Kewley’s comments and his disillusion with the goings-on at Maine road – I must comment that if you took such articles to heart the club would be a very sad place to be. Any one who writes, after Fowler’s first game, that, ‘Fowler’s inclusion proved a failed gamble’ either knows very little about football or has a particular dislike of our club or the player.

The next thing we will see is a comment from Ron Atkinson stating ‘That is the worst defensive display I have ever seen’ (he obviously missed the game against the Scum at Maine Road!).

Don’t listen to drivel that the papers decide to write – it isn’t depressing i’ts b*****ks. The reality is that our club is in the best state it has been for many many years and that is down to:

• Keegan – Because he has the respect of everyone in the game and playerswant to come and play for him.
• Bernstein – Because he has turned the club around financially and givenKeegan the funds to go out and buy world class players.
• The Fans – The best in the world (biased I know!).

In conclusion – what a truly wonderful club we support and, for the first time in years, everything about the club is geared for success.

Keep the faith, not long now (you can tell I’m a City fan!).

OPINION: RODNEY vs. ROBBIE

So Peter Kewley (MCIVTA 887) hopes Robbie Fowler doesn’t turn out to be another (Rodney) Marsh!

I presume Peter is referring to the argument that Marsh’s purchase was mis-timed, adversely affected team spirit and led to us failing to win the league that year. I demur but it is an irrelevant analogy anyway. We’re not going to win the league this year.

Rodney was a genius on a football pitch. His vision, grace, and skill combined with his desire to entertain, his free-spiritedness and his disregard for authority made him a hero for us Blues in the 70’s.

If Robbie Fowler turns out to be good enough to tie Rodney’s bootlaces, that’ll be good enough for me…

OPINION: LAW 11

Re the WBA Match report from James Walsh.

“We then managed to ‘score’ again when Fowler bundled the ball into Hoult, the ball slipping under the ‘keeper for Anelka to knock home for 2-1. Unfortunately the linesman had flagged for offside, presumably for Fowler as Anelka had run from behind Fowler when he’d shot. At least our kid said Fowler was offside so that’s good enough for me.”

Your kid’s wrong. Fowler wasn’t offside. When Horlock shot (it turned into a cross) Fowler was well onside, Anelka was in an offside position, and the linesman flagged. Now either referee Barry had given his assistants different instructions to the FA norm (wait and see to whom the ball goes before you flag) or the assistant really thought Fowler was offside. Either way he shouldn’t have flagged.

Now if Horlock’s shot had gone straight in, only if Anelka was obstructing the ‘keeper’s vision should he have been given offside (and there have been some very dodgy goals allowed with – uusually United – players in front of the ‘keeper). If Horlock shot, it hit the ‘keeper and bounced back to Anelka, Anelka then would be given offside because he played it.

But as Fowler wasn’t offside, then when he shot (assuming Anelka wasn’t then in front of Fowler – he looked just about level on TV), the question is whether we’ve moved on to a new “discrete phase of play”. If the “pass” from Horlock, Fowler’s shot, ‘keeper’s parry, and Anelka’s “goal” are all one part of play it’s offside; if you start a “new phase” of play once Fowler is deemed onside, then the goal should have stood.

The “phase of play” idea is not clearly defined in the laws. But, further away from goal, time and again a player is in an offside position but the ball goes to another player running through and the assistant rightly allows play to go on. However, if the player who was in an offside position then runs to receive a pass from the onside player (with an advantage because he’s got ahead of the defenders), personally I think he’s then interfering but I’ve never seen it given. Imagine it – assistant puts his flag up level with the penalty area for an offside near the halfway line… But if that’s a separate phase of play, then the same is true of Anelka’s goal, except it’s nearer the goal.

Anyway, the bad decision was the first one – Fowler wasn’t offside and if he’d scored direct, his début goal would have been disallowed. Given other decisions I think the assistants were “flag-happy”, weren’t applying the new rules, and the FA may want to check what instructions were given. I’ll ask them!

REQUEST: ARSENAL TICKETS

I am looking for one ticket for the Arsenal match so if anyone has one spare please contact me.

Bro-in-law wants 2 adults and 1 child tickets for Arsenal (trying to wean his girlfriend’s son from her affiliation to the Rags)!

Desperately seeking an Arsenal ticket. Could be last ever visit to the home of football. Can anybody help?

REQUEST: CITY MAG VIEWS

I’m a long-time City fan, now based in London, who thinks that, what with the revitalised team and move to the new stadium, it’s time us loyal fans were provided with a decent magazine in the same way that team like Arsenal, Chelsea and (dare I say it) U***** have. I think that the current City mag looks like a glorified match day programme. I’d like to ask fans what they would like to see in a proper City mag – things like more in-depth interviews with players past and present, statistics, posters, competitions, etc. and who they’d like to have writing in it so I can get ideas together from the people that matter and submit them to the club. Any suggestions can be sent to me:

REQUEST: REDDISH BLUES

The next meeting of the Reddish Branch (CSA) will be on Wednesday 12th February at The Ash Hotel, Manchester Road, Stockport at 8.00pm.

Our confirmed guests are WBU Light-Welterweight Champion Ricky Hatton and 1998 Commonwealth & Four Times World 200m Butterfly Champion James Hickman.

As usual everyone is welcome.

For more details visit our web site at http://www.reddishblues.com/

REQUEST: JERSEY BLUES

Are there any Jersey based Blues who can help me?

I am travelling there in March with my wife and 2 daughters and would like information of any “kid friendly” pubs in St Helier that have good meals available.

REQUEST: WE’RE NOT REALLY HERE BOOK INFORMATION

We’re Not Really Here – A celebration of MCFC’s last year at Maine Road, By Kevin Cummins.

“I made my first visit to Maine Road in August 1961 and fell in love” – Kevin Cummins.

For 80 years Manchester City’s fans have had Maine Road as their home. For half that time Kevin Cummins has been there, enjoying the dramatic highs and suffering the heartbreaking lows that come hand in hand with a true fan’s devotion to his team.

With a year’s unprecedented access on pitch and behind the scenes, access to City players past and present and even a photographic studio based in the Kippax carpark, We’re Not Really Here is truly original: a comprehensive insight into a Premiership club and its supporters from a fan’s eye view.

As one of the most acclaimed music photographers of his generation and the master image maker of the Manchester music scene Kevin Cummins is more than qualified to be the visual documentary maker of this poignant year in the history of his club.

The honesty of his photographs and his ability to capture the humanity of his subjects makes We’re Not Really Here as much a social document as a fan’s keepsake. Players and supporters from visiting clubs are here, as much a part of the atmosphere of any vibrant stadium as the home fans and team themselves. There’s even a photograph of an opposition player sporting a City tattoo on his leg.

On 11 May Manchester City play Southampton in their last Premiership game at Maine Road. When the final whistle goes an era will have ended for MCFC, and thanks to Kevin Cummins Maine Road will live on in more than just memories.

Kevin Cummins was born within crying distance of Maine Road in Withington Hospital on 14 July 1953. His first game at Maine Road was a 3-1 victory over Leicester on 19 August 1961. Since then he has followed City over land and sea (and Stretford) for 40 years. The rest of his time is spent earning a living as one of Britain’s most venerated music photographers.

Kevin began working for the NME in 1977 and his award winning pictures were a major contributing factor in the rise of the Madchester scene and Britpop. His work has been published world wide in titles as such as The Face,Q, Mojo, Rolling Stone, Newsweek, FourFourTwo, Esquire and Italian Vogue.

His work is in the permanent collections of: The National Portrait Gallery, The Victoria & Albert Museum, The National Museum of Photography, The Lowry Centre The Royal Exchange Theatre, Oldham City Art Gallery and The Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

This is Cummins’ second monograph. His first: The Smiths and Beyond was published to critical acclaim by Vision On in 2002.

He currently lives exactly 207 miles from The City of Manchester Stadium. Selected photographs from the forthcoming book, ‘We’re Not Really Here: Manchester City’s Final Season at Maine Road’ by Kevin Cummins are available to view.

Go to the site: http://homepage.mac.com/k318kgh/PhotoAlbum2.html

For further information contact:

BLUE HUMOUR

On a tour of the north of England, the Pope took a couple of days off his itinerary to visit Southport beach on an impromptu sightseeing trip.

His 4X4 Popemobile (just like a Toyota Hilux – but armoured!) was driving along the golden sands when there was an enormous commotion heard just off the headland. They rushed to see what it was and upon approaching the scene the Pope noticed just outside the surf, a hapless man wearing Man Utd football jersey, struggling frantically to free himself from the jaws of a 20 foot shark.

At that moment a speedboat containing three men wearing Liverpool football tops roared into view from around the point. Spontaneously, one of the men took aim and fired a harpoon into the shark’s ribs, immobilising it instantly. The other two reached out and pulled the Manc from the water and then, using long clubs, beat the shark to death.

They bundled the bleeding, semi-conscious Manc into the speed boat along with the dead shark and then prepared for a hasty retreat, when they heard frantic shouting from the shore. It was of course the Pope, and he summoned them to the beach.

Upon them reaching the shore the Pope went into raptures about the rescue and said, “I give you my blessing for your brave actions. I had heard that there were some racist, xenophobic people trying to divide Liverpool and Manchester, but now I have seen with my own eyes this is not true. I can see that your society is a truly enlightened example of racial harmony and could serve as a model on which other nations could follow.”

He blessed them all and drove off in a cloud of dust.

As he departed, the harpoonist asked the others, “Who was that?!”

“That,” one answered, “was his Holiness the Pope. He is in direct contact with God and has access to all God’s wisdom.”

“Well,” the harpoonist replied, “he knows nothing about shark hunting. How’s that bait holding up or do we need to get another one?”

BLUE HUMOUR: MORE KEEGANBALLS

“They’re the second best team in the world and there’s no higher praise than that.”

“If I had a blank piece of paper there’d be five names on it.”

“You can’t do better than go away from home and get a draw.”

“I don’t think there’s anyone bigger or smaller than Maradona.”

“The 33 or 34 year olds will be 36 or 37 by the time the next World Cup comes around, if they’re not careful.”

“I know what is around the corner – I just don’t know where the corner is.”

“Chile have three options: they could win or they could lose.”

“He’s using his strength and that is his strength, his strength.”

“Gary always weighed up his options especially when he had no choice.”

“The tide is very much in our court now.”

“One of his strengths is not heading.”

“He can’t speak Turkey, but you can tell he’s delighted.”

“There’ll be no siestas in Madrid tonight.”

“England can end the millennium as it started – as the greatest football nation in the world.”

“They compare Steve McManaman to Steve Heighway and he’s nothing like him, but I can see why – it’s because he’s a bit different.”

“In some ways, cramp is worse than having a broken leg.”

“Despite his white boots, he has real pace…”

“That would have been a goal if it wasn’t saved.”

“Goalkeepers aren’t born today until they’re in their late 2Os or 3Os.”

“The substitute is about to come on – he’s a player who was left out of the starting line-up today.”

“The ref was vertically 15 yards away.”

“It’s like a toaster, the ref’s shirt pocket. Every time there’s a tackle, up pops a yellow card.”

“There are two schools of thought on the way the rest of this half is going to develop; everybody’s got their own opinion…”

“I’d love to be a mole on the wall in the Liverpool dressing room at half-time.”

“The game has gone rather scrappy as both sides realise they could win this match or lose it.”

“I’m not disappointed – just disappointed.”

“I came to Nantes two years ago and it’s much the same today, except that it’s totally different.”

“A tremendous strike which hit the defender full on the arm – and it nearly came off.”

“The good news for Nigeria is that they’re two-nil down very early in the game.”

“That decision, for me, was almost certainly definitely wrong.”

RESULTS

9 February 2003

Manchester United     1 - 1  Manchester City       67,646
Newcastle United      1 - 1  Arsenal               52,157

8 February 2003

Liverpool             1 - 1  Middlesbrough         42,247
Birmingham City       1 - 3  Chelsea               29,475
Blackburn Rovers      1 - 0  Southampton           24,896
Charlton Athletic     2 - 1  Everton               26,623
Fulham                2 - 1  Aston Villa           17,092
Leeds United          1 - 0  West Ham United       40,126
Tottenham Hotspur     4 - 1  Sunderland            36,075
West Bromwich Albion  1 - 1  Bolton Wanderers      26,933

League table to 09 February 2003 inclusive.

                             HOME          AWAY        OVERALL
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L  F   A   GD Pts
 1 Arsenal         27 12  1  1 33 13  5  5  3 24 16 17  6  4  57  29  28  57
 2 Manchester Utd  27 11  2  1 26  9  5  4  4 18 16 16  6  5  44  25  19  54
 3 Newcastle Utd   26 12  1  1 25  8  3  3  6 17 24 15  4  7  42  32  10  49
 4 Chelsea         27  8  4  1 27 10  5  5  4 21 17 13  9  5  48  27  21  48
 5 Everton         27  8  4  1 20 12  5  2  7 15 20 13  6  8  35  32   3  45
 6 Liverpool       27  5  8  1 20 12  6  2  5 18 14 11 10  6  38  26  12  43
 7 Tottenham H.    27  8  3  2 25 16  4  3  7 15 21 12  6  9  40  37   3  42
 8 Charlton Ath.   27  6  3  4 20 18  6  3  5 16 16 12  6  9  36  34   2  42
 9 Southampton     27  7  5  2 18 11  3  4  6 10 15 10  9  8  28  26   2  39
10 Manchester City 27  7  1  5 23 19  4  4  6 15 19 11  5 11  38  38   0  38
11 Blackburn R.    27  6  5  3 19 14  3  5  5 13 17  9 10  8  32  31   1  37
12 Aston Villa     27  9  1  4 21  9  1  4  8 10 20 10  5 12  31  29   2  35
13 Leeds United    27  5  2  6 14 14  5  2  7 20 20 10  4 13  34  34   0  34
14 Middlesbrough   26  7  5  1 25 16  1  2 10  5 14  8  7 11  30  30   0  31
15 Fulham          26  7  2  4 16 11  1  4  8 12 23  8  6 12  28  34  -6  30
16 Birmingham City 27  3  4  6 12 18  3  4  7 11 22  6  8 13  23  40 -17  26
17 Bolton Wndrs    27  3  6  4 18 20  2  4  8 12 24  5 10 12  30  44 -14  25
18 West Brom A.    26  3  4  6 11 17  2  2  9  9 21  5  6 15  20  38 -18  21
19 West Ham United 27  1  6  7 13 22  3  2  8 15 30  4  8 15  28  52 -24  20
20 Sunderland      27  3  2  8  8 17  1  5  8 10 25  4  7 16  18  42 -24  19

MCIVTA FAQ [v0203.07]

[0] MCIVTA Addresses

 Articles (Heidi Pickup)          : editor@mcivta.city-fan.org

 News/rumour (Don Barrie)         : news@mcivta.city-fan.org

 Subscriptions (Madeleine Hawkins): subscriptions@mcivta.city-fan.org

 Technical problems (Paul)        : paul@city-fan.org

 FAQ (David Warburton)            : faq@mcivta.city-fan.org

[1] What are MCIVTA’s publishing deadlines?

Deadlines for issues are nominally 6pm Monday and Thursday evenings.

[2] MCIVTA Back Issues and Manchester City Supporters’ home page

http://www.uit.no/mancity/ is the unofficial Manchester City Supporters’ home page. Created in 1994, it is the longest running of the Manchester City related web sites. Back issues of MCIVTA are also hosted on the site.

[3] What is the club’s official web site?

The official club web site can be found at http://www.mcfc.co.uk/

[4] What supporters’ clubs are there?

Manchester City FC recognises three supporters’ clubs: The “Official Supporters Club” (http://www.mancity.net/osc/index.html); the “Centenary Supporters’ Association” (http://www.callnetuk.com/home/sef/) and “The International Supporters’ Club” (http://www.mcfc.co.uk/extra/fanzone/isc.asp)

[5] Where can I find out about the fans’ committee?

The Fans’ Committee operates as an interface between supporters and the club. It has its own website, http://www.mcfc-fans.com/ containing info about forthcoming meetings as well as minutes from previous gatherings.

[6] Where can I find information about our new stadium?

The latest information regarding the progress of our new home can be found at www.mcfc.co.uk/article.asp?article=111916&Title=Introduction&lid=New+Stadium

[7] What match day broadcasts are available on the web?

Live match commentaries and archives of games, reports and interviews can be found here: http://www.mcfc.co.uk/comment.asp. An alternate live commentary service, hosted by Yahoo, is located at: http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/foot/audio/live/schedule/index.html.

[8] Where can I find out if City are live on satellite TV?

http://www.satfootball.com/pl.html provides a listing of Premiership games being shown on UK domestic and foreign satellite channels.

[9] What’s the music the teams run out to?

The music we run out to at Maine Road is “Nightmare” by Brainbug and is available on the Positiva label.

[10] Do we have a Usenet newsgroup?

Yes we do: uk.sport.football.clubs.man-city is our home on usenet. If you are not familiar with usenet, a basic explanation is available here: http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,289893,sid9_gci213262,00.html

[11] Acknowledgements

Thanks go to John Arnold for providing the match day music information, to Ian Bell for pointing out the alternate live match commentary service and to Damian Quinn, Stephen Webb and Roger Haigh for the Satellite TV info.

DISCLAIMER
The views expressed in MCIVTA are entirely those of the subscribersand there is no intention to represent these opinions as being thoseof Manchester City Football Club, nor of any of the companies anduniversities by whom the subscribers are employed. It is not inany way whatsoever connected to the club or any other relatedorganisation and is simply a group of supporters using this mediumas a means of disseminating news and exchanging opinions.

Heidi Pickup, heidi@mcivta.freeserve.co.uk

Editor: